FBI Russia Investigation

February 23, 2018

More than 20 people have been indicted in the Russia investigation so far, with a majority pleading not-guilty. George Papadopoulos and Michael Flynn have pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about their relationship to people connected to the Russian government. Other indictments are for other Trump campaign organizers, some Russian companies and citizens, and some US citizens. Investigations continue into how deep the lies are buried.

Amongst his many tweets, Trump tied this investigation to the recent school shooting in Florida. He said “Very sad that the FBI missed all of the many signals sent out by the Florida school shooter. This is not acceptable. They are spending too much time trying to prove Russian collusion with the Trump campaign – there is no collusion. Get back to the basics and make us all proud!” Since this tweet, several have criticized its focus on the investigation in the midst of a tragedy. The White House Press Secretary, Sarah Sanders, among many others, have argued that this interpretation was not his intent.

Robin Johnson, a part-time political science lecturer, had plenty to say about this investigation. He said “It’s clear proof that Russia was actively engaged in our election process, which a lot of people would suspect remains to be seen their ultimate purpose. I think it is to sow discord in our democracy, which is a very serious issue.” Johnson thought that it is unpredictable whether these indictments will affect Trump’s status as President. He did say “what’s gonna come out of this could be more leads by the special prosecutor, Mueller.” But Johnson did not mince words about the recent tweet, calling it simply “despicable”.

Many students, however, are not aware of the investigation, or simply know it exists. Students say that they do not believe this will impact their everyday experiences, so it is difficult to keep up with it. As the story continues, the findings show promise to be increasingly pertinent and newsworthy. Students shared sentiments with Johnson, saying that the tweet was “disgusting”. As the investigation continues to unfold, perhaps the importance will reveal itself to all types of people.